Chapter Text
Gentle waves lapped against the hull of Gem’s boat, ebbing and flowing a melodic rhythm. A seemingly endless expanse of water stretched before her eyes, slowly turning an amber crimson, intwined with mild pink hues due to the sunset resting on the edge of the horizon. It would be night soon. The darkness to envelop Gem’s vessel and surely lead her plummeting to the depths. Gem scoffed at the thought. Ok, now that’s just a bit overdramatic. Her frizzy orange curls fluttered in the sea breeze, as did her dark blue split-poncho; the once powerful wind slowly dying down for the time being. Her hands rested firmly on the helm, because there was a slight truth behind the idea.
The sea was dangerous and unforgiving enough, choosing to make her career one that revolved around the liminal abyss was already risky. If Gem didn’t find somewhere to dock for the time being, she would have much less control over her fate in the night. Enjoy the sight of the setting sun all she wanted; it was a timer counting down her hours to find safety. As safe as you could get in these parts anyway.
Gem had been warned by her old townsfolk that her endeavour to this part of the ocean was a death wish. They had warned her that the fish were abnormal, as were the people, and that strange – and deadly – happenings were frequent around those parts. She supposed it wasn’t the entire truth, but she wasn’t sure that they were lying either.
Her old town had been slowly dwindling in numbers, the fishermen and women venturing out further than the confines of her town’s waters – hoping for something new and exciting. The number of fish being brung into the town was decreasing, so it was understandable that they couldn’t afford to let another provider of food leave. Guilt slithered into Gem’s conscience (as if it wasn’t there already), reminding her of the distraught look on her friend’s faces as she announced the news.
Scott had understood, although he was rightfully sad to see her go, he accepted it – as did Shelby and Katherine. Sausage had been encouraging, albeit a little upset too. The others found it much more difficult. Joel and Lizzie had already left a while ago to find an adventurous and thrilling place to live in for the rest of their lives together. I wonder if they found it. Gem couldn’t help but question, a fond but reminiscent smile plastered on her face.
Her mind wandered back to her old place, questioning if they were managing alright without her. She shook the idea out of her head, of course they were – most of them were capable enough to fish a good meal, and the others had all the capability to learn if they ever needed to. I bet Jimmy and Oli are doing just that right now. She smiled even wider. Those two weren’t the best fishers, just yet. Jimmy took a while to get accustomed to a skill, as did Oli, but she hoped that they could get the hang of reeling up a fish and operating a boat soon enough.
They had been supportive of her initial idea to move away to somewhere else, but as she had mentioned The Marrows, they had immediately urged her against it. There was probably some reason behind that. Care? Rumours about the place? The fact that The Marrows was where Joel and Lizzie had headed too? Maybe she would meet them there!
Her thoughts began to drift away from the past and began to think about the future. Fantasies of living in a small but homely place near the water, making new friends, who knows – maybe even meeting someone she could spend the rest of her life with.
Before she knew it, the sun had almost concealed itself underneath the ocean’s cover. Gem suddenly snapped back into awareness; had she at least been going the right way? She hurriedly walked over to the back of the stern, checking the box where she put her map. As she pulled it out, she came to the obvious realization that her only guidance of the otherwise labyrinth of the sea should be by the helm, not in the back of the ship.
She sighed and turned back to the cabin, only to be met with a dim light circling in the sky. A lighthouse! Gem tossed the map to the side, disregarding where it went and redirecting her vessel to the beacon of new beginnings. Her boat began to pick up speed as she raced across the slowly-darkening ocean. She flicked her ship light on without thinking, a habit she didn’t even register. The lighthouse began to come into view, a towering structure sitting purposely on top of a presumably ancient cliff. Classic colours of red and white circled the lighthouse in stripes, the signature markings were faded and dull, or was that just how it appeared at night?
A plethora of unneeded questions distracted her, making her unaware to the fog rolling in.
It caught Gem by surprise, usually she would be aware that a blanket of fog was preparing to sweep the night sky, she was rarely ever caught off guard. Panic began to rise in her throat, an unnatural feeling that she was not used to, what was happening? She never lost her composure in unexpected conditions, was it the lack of sleep? Was it to do with the rumours surrounding The Marrows? She shouldn’t be worried, the lighthouse was guiding her through the unusual fog, it’s now near blinding light broke through the obscurity with ease.
Gem could see the outlines of what appeared to be a town in the distance, rapidly growing clearer. It sat wedged between two cliffsides, a protective shield as to what could be out there on the water. That must be The Marrows! She ecstatically thought to herself, but even at the positive revelation, her strange anxiety only seemed to heighten. She was being exposed to whatever this fog was for far too long, she needed to get away before it devoured her and her ship.
The small cluster of homes became clearer, the dock nearing closer and closer. The panic began to envelop her, intrusive thoughts began to linger.
They’re watching.
They’re following.
It’s not safe.
They’re nearing the stern.
What ‘they’ were was unknown to Gem, but all her frantic mind knew was that they were watching her, stalking her. Waiting for her sanity to fall to just the right level so they could strike. Patiently. Hungrily. It was as if her unconscious mind knew what was threatening her, but was withholding information from her. It was as if someone, something, had planted the knowledge in her brain, but was missing out many of the key details.
She heard a distant grumble from behind her, inhuman and monstrous.
That was all the motivation Gem needed.
Her boat came into the waters of The Marrows, she approached the dock at a dangerous speed, her mind driven by panic and desperation at a last attempt to get to safety, she had never felt like this before. Amber lights flickered on the dock, a particularly bright one appearing to be held up by some sort of figure, was there someone there? Gem didn’t care, introductions could wait for later, the silhouettes’ details were blurred and shadowed by the canopy of the night.
She was so close, just a little bit further. Just a bit more and she would be safe. She was going to be alrig-
CRACK
Out of nowhere, the bow of her boat was pierced by a pillar of stone jutting out of the water. Pieces of debris snapped and scattered in numerous directions, planks and bolts turning into splinters and scraps. Shards of – whatever – were flung at her window, cracking the screen into a spiderweb pattern in a heartbeat. Just as quickly as it had emerged, it retracted back into the water, leaving a gaping hole in the bow and a petrified Gem to process the event helplessly. Strained by the injury, her ship lurched to the right. Her eyes blew wide as she realised – her ship was capsizing, and taking her down with it.
“No, no, no, no!” She yelled, all mixing into a slur of words, she tried to grab onto everything, anything to steady herself. She paid no mind to the array of fishing equipment going overboard, her belongings – like she had many – following suit. All she was preoccupied with was staying dry, staying above water, staying alive.
As the boat tipped over further, water began to speedily fill the vessel, Gem could smell the clumps of seaweed loitering the water, mixed with the overpowering smell of salt. The boards underneath her feet became damp and slippery as they rotated to a sharp angle, it was almost too steep to stand upright, causing her to clutch a set of bars on the roof of the cabin.
She briefly lost her footing, which cost her her balance, Gem’s right foot abruptly plunging into the sheer cold of the water, she yelled in pain as it twisted in a way that was definitely not natural. Steadily, the water continued to rise, engulfing both of her legs beneath the chilling abyss. It beckoned her to succumb to the ocean, to perish peacefully, to not resist. There was a part of her panicking brain that wished to do just that, to accept her fate and meet her end, but her survival instincts overrode the desire to give up.
She could’ve swum, she would’ve gotten out with ease, but her unnatural panic prevented the idea from coming through. It was like the sea, the fog, whatever it was, was blindfolding her to the obvious answers, and so she held on. Her grip was loosening around the metal bar, and the water was rising past her chest.
This could be it.
At least she told her friends she loved them, that she got to say goodbye. Maybe this had been the fate Lizzie and Joel had fallen to, but at least they had each other. Gem was alone, she was going to die alone. She had been so close to her goal but she had failed. All hopes for her future were dashed as she contemplated how she was to die here.
If she had just stayed at home, like all her friends had told her, this wouldn’t have happened.
Salty tears mixed with the water beneath her as it reached her head, she made no effort to hold her breath as her face sunk underneath the currents. Her hands finally released the bar above her as her body began to fall further and further into the water. She closed her eyes, the drive to survive vanished out of her as she considered how death would feel. Would there be anything after? If she was born again, what would she become? I wonder if they’ll die like this, just as I did. How ironic.
She smiled; this really was it then.
...
...
...
Pressure gripped her wrist as she felt hands wrap around her arm. Her eyes flew open at the contact, the water stung her eyes as she attempted to make out whatever had grabbed her. Her body began to move, being dragged away by the hands with an almost desperate force. She noticed the stern of her ship sinking deeper behind her, and as she weakly looked up, she noticed the surface growing closer. Someone was saving her. She had given up all hope while someone – she most likely didn’t know – had dived into the water to help her. Gem’s lungs burnt as the moonlight cascaded through the sea, illuminating her rescuer.
Hazelnut hair flowed down their back, messy and untamed, their face was almost invisible from the way they were facing, but Gem could make out a faint grimace. Their dark blue hoodie couldn’t possibly make it easy to swim, which made them all the more admirable to Gem. Imagine that, you’re being rescued from drowning by someone and you’re in awe about the fact they’re swimming with a hoodie on. She would’ve laughed at the thought if she could breathe.
The figure brought her above the water, they gasped for air, as did Gem, who was trying to inhale as much oxygen as humanely possible. She coughed and spluttered up the water that had began to fill her lungs, choking on the air as she breathed. Now that her vision wasn’t obstructed, she could tell that her rescuer was a woman, her deep blue eyes shined in the light of the moon. She gazed at Gem, both worry and fear encasing her face.
“Are you alright?!” She exclaimed, a panicked question between breaths, all she could do in return was nod weakly. The woman clearly had an Australian accent, Gem could tell as much even over the crashing waves. She looked around frantically, the fog was encroaching them ever so slowly, but it still caused the woman to visibly freak out.
“We have to go, now!” So it wasn’t just Gem who was panicking over the fog. The woman wrapped one of her arms around her waist, pulling Gem with her as she swam hurriedly towards the shore. Putrid tastes of sea water ebbed and flowed into Gem’s mouth, she had no idea why it tasted so horrifically, but she was not willing to stay in the water any longer to find out. As the woman performed an attempted one-armed breaststroke, Gem eyed the town in front of her.
The details were too blurred to properly make out in the state she was in, so she simply acknowledged the fact it looked welcoming enough. Before long, the grainy comfort of sand draped over her body as she was pulled onto the shore by the woman. Both of them panting and attempting to recover from the life-threatening event.
She had lived. Because of some random stranger who wanted to help her more than she wanted to help herself. They laid there for however long in silence, for the most part, the angered lapping of the waves attempted to drag Gem back in every now and then, but she hoisted herself backwards each time with whatever arm strength she had left.
She did a mental body check, her lungs still hurt, and she was coughing up water every now and then, but they were cleared a substantial amount at least. Her foot was definitely hurt in some way, maybe not a broken foot, or leg, but she would probably need some walking aid for a while. Her eyes stung, as did her hands from the vice-like grip she had on that bar. But she was alive. She lived. Thanks to the person lying beside her.
"Thank you.” She managed to choke out, her face was red from the tears she had shed in the midst of it all, and she was fighting the urge to let the rest of them spill. The woman took a while to respond, but she eventually replied.
“No problem, mate.” She spoke. A few more out of breath huffs later, she added, “Any injuries?” it was an afterthought, she must have been processing the scenario as well. Gem nodded lightly before realising that the woman was staring up at the night sky.
“Uh, yeah, I think so. Just my leg mainly. Foot? I don’t know.” She mumbled. The woman chuckled under her breath, so she heard what Gem had said, that’s good, her words were not illegible then. The two laid there for a while longer before the woman heaved herself up to a sitting position with a groan. She looked over Gem’s way, showing a relived smile covering her face. Gem barely had the energy to sit up herself and return the gesture.
“I’m Pearl.” The woman – Pearl – said. Gem blinked before piecing together that she was to reply with her own name.
“Oh! I’m… I’m Gem.” She replied. Pearl smiled even brighter.
“Well, nice to meet ‘ya, Gem! Let’s ignore that… rocky start to our introduction, shall we?” She winked. Gem’s face cracked into a genuine smile, and she laughed.
“Did you seriously… make a joke about the fact I almost died to a creepy rock coming out of the water… and you use that… as your first impression?!” Although the implications were dark, Gem chuckled as she pointed accusingly at Pearl.
Pearl made a motion with her left hand, waving away the topic and looking somewhere else almost sheepishly. “Oh, me? Neverrr…” She retorted as she attempted to hide a chuckle herself. The two women burst into laughter, the hysteria of almost meeting their end making them laugh to - clearly - just about anything. Neither could get a word in while the adrenaline still running high in the both of them began to slowly wear off. Eventually their laughter ceased, a comfortable quiet working its way around them easily, as if they had been friends for a long time. Gem sighed.
“This, this is The Marrows, right?” she questioned. She knew not whether she could trust her cloudy mind that this was where she was meant to end up. Pearl nodded lightly.
“Yup, and you just got it’s signature welcome, sorry about that by the way.” Pearl’s face morphed from one of amusement to one of pity. She had lost everything, her ship, her belongings, to Gem – even her dignity. She shrugged.
“I’m here now, I guess.” She turned her head away from Pearl to view the fathomless danger that stood before her. Shadowy waves grasped her bare feet, Gem had barely even registered that she’d lost her shoes in the middle of it all. She still had the clothes on her back, she supposed, speaking of which – it had just became evident to her that there was a shard of glass hanging onto her poncho, luckily only penetrating the poncho and not the thin, white gypsy shirt underneath.
She swiftly plucked the shard out of her garment, tearing the fabric, much to her dismay.
“Dang it.” She muttered under her breath. She’d have to find a tailor somewhere around here to get that fixed, maybe even a new one if she could afford it. Her eyes wandered back over to Pearl, who was looking at her in contemplation. As she noticed the red head catching her gaze, she spoke.
“Do you… have anywhere to sleep for the night, or live for the foreseeable future?” She gestured towards the town, which Gem still couldn’t make out well enough. She hadn’t considered that. She had a dream of starting somewhere fresh, yet she hadn’t even thought about accommodations. She was never one to be unprepared, maybe in the thrill of it all, she had barely remembered the essentials of living somewhere; having a home.
All she could do was shake her head solemnly in response. She probably could have stayed in her ship, now that she thought about it. It wasn’t comfy, but the blow-up bed and blankets she had stored away would’ve done for the time being. That’s probably why she hadn’t thought about housing - she had a temporary place, she’d figure it out.
Now she couldn’t. She wasn’t able to just ‘figure it out’ anymore, she had nothing but her soul left. It was all gone, all gone and there was nothing she could do about it.
“Do you want to stay with me for a while?” The question caught Gem off guard, her desolate thoughts snapped in half at the offer. “I mean, like a roommate, you can stay for as long as you’d like, or maybe for the rest of your time here at The Marrows…! Or, you know, if you don’t want to! It’s, it’s your choice! Yeah…!” Pearl mumbled as her words became less and less coherent.
Gem simply reached forwards and slung her arms around Pearl’s shoulders, pulling her into an incredibly grateful hug.
“Thank you… thank you so much.” She muttered into her shoulder. Pearl returned the embrace, speaking brief words that could’ve been ‘No problem’ or ‘You’re welcome’, but all Gem could think was about was thankfulness. She didn’t know Pearl, Pearl didn’t know her, but she had still saved her life, offered her a home – and brung her hope that things could be okay here. Tears threatened to spill over at the sentiment, she didn’t let them, but they were there.
She didn’t know how long they remained on the beach, or what time it was, but all she knew was that she was impossibly grateful for Pearl. For whatever reason Pearl had been brung to the dock, whatever reason she had leapt into the water to save her, she was glad that luck had been on her side today. She was alive, and she had one woman to thank for it.
Pearl had helped Gem walk all the way to her place, ignoring her insistence that she didn’t need her help walking, she could’ve limped pathetically the entire way over there, you just watch her.
Pearl’s house was seated on the left corner of The Marrows, which she had said was attached to the town’s post office. So she’s the post lady? Must have been why she was out so late. Gem deduced. Her house was a quaint but homely two-story house which had walls adorned with various plants and was fitted with numerous solar panels all over the roof. Clearly well-tended to shrubbery loitered outside the house, providing a friendly atmosphere as the pair approached.
The post office was a mix of blues and reds, towering just slightly above Pearl’s house, it was just shy of four stories. Just as her home, the post office was equipped with numerous solar panels, with a few brilliantly shining light posts dotted around the path. Well-trodden earth beneath them waved it’s way up towards Pearl’s house and the post office just to the right. Evidently old wood made up a crossroad sign they had just passed, the signs were written as such in messy handwriting.
Pearl’s :) ☆ --->
The Post Office --->
<--- Greater Marrow
She smiled at the annotations on Pearl’s sign. The star and smiley face seemed so natural, casual. Clearly she had been living here for a long time.
The two approached the door to her home slowly, eventually stopping as Pearl fumbled to get her keys out. Gem laughed hysterically at the display while Pearl shouted at her to stop her giggling, all in good fun.
After a little longer, Pearl jammed one of her few keys into the lock of the door, it was a collection of various planks and boards, most differing in colour. There was a frosted glass window carved into the centre-top of the door, blocking Gem from peeking inside. Pearl gripped the small, metal doorknob, twisting it and pushing inwards, it was an incredibly out-of-place pigment compared to the rest of the door.
Pearl finally pushed the door fully open, gazing inside and – presumably – feeling around for the light switch. She flicked the lights on with one swift movement of her hand and a soft, orange light filled the house.
Gem was taken aback by the juxtaposition of the exterior to the interior, it was a relatively modern-looking place. The living room had all the necessities, a well-loved couch, a couple coffee tables dotted around the place, a set of chairs enclosed around a wide dining table, equipped with all the proper dining utensils. She had no clue as to why there were so many chairs for someone who seemed to live alone, maybe she had guests over frequently?
A sleek countertop stood proudly in the centre of what she presumed to be the kitchen, acting as a separation for the room, neatly placed barstools pushed up to one side of the counter. Almost cowering behind it was an assortment of kitchen necessities, a proper stove, fridge, cabinets stocked full of dishes and plates, etc.
Crimson mangrove stairs lead up to the second floor, trailing past a number of windows tracing the walls. Oh, and there were lots of plants everywhere. Fucking hell there were so many plants
“You a plant person?” Gem teasingly asked, the rhetorical question making Pearl chuckle.
“Just a lil’ bit.” She responded, helping Gem make her way into the house. I could totally see myself living here. As soon as the thought rolled in, she shooed it away. No, Gem. That’s just weird. This isn’t a house showing, Pearl just offered to let me stay here for a while, nothing more. She reminded herself.
Faint barking came from upstairs, and out of nowhere, a white dog raced down the stairs at a breakneck speed. It leaped towards Pearl, who had to let go of Gem to catch the force of the impact. Gem steadied herself by leaning against the doorframe as she watched the chaos beside her unfold.
“Ok, yes, hi! Sorry I’m back a bit late, Tilly.” Pearl smiled at the dog as it wagged its tail contently as it – she – was being cradled in her owner’s arms. Pearl slowly lowered Tilly back down to the ground with a heave, leaving the snow-like dog to investigate the newcomer.
She approached Gem with curiosity, sniffing her hand for a brief moment before barking contently, returning her attention to her owner.
“She’s adorable!” Gem practically squealed, Pearl looked back at her with agreement.
“Isn’t she just?” She beamed in return. It was a pretty smile, Gem thought to herself. Of course, there were no thoughts other than platonic behind the idea, just a girl complimenting another, yeah.
Tilly was curled up in her bed, a plump, cushiony fortress seated next to Pearl's. Gem and Pearl were sat on top of the large, queen-sized bed, chatting and getting to know each other. Simple questions like 'What's your favourite colour?' and 'Do you have any siblings?, all the basic formalities that distracted them from the fact they had just barely brushed past an encounter with death.
Pearl had assessed Gem's foot, and it had definitely... contorted into a position it shouldn't be in. She had wrapped it in a cast and propped it up on a spare pillow she had lying around, so Gem was resting for the time being as they talked. Pearl had offered her some spare clothes – as her own were soaked and would probably make everything worse with a nice serving of hypothermia. So, Gem eagerly took the new set of clothes.
She had a basic white-grey hoodie on with long sleeves and a hood on the back that acted as a basket to catch her frizzy, amber hair. She had a pair of navy blue, boot-cut trousers and two fluffy socks with pictures of dogs sewn onto the fabric.
Pearl just had a red hoodie on herself, with grey sweatpants accompanying it.
"So, why did you come to The Marrows in the first place? It's kind of a strange place to put on your visiting bucket list." She chuckled at her own remark, Gem smiled lightly in response.
"Well I guess you could say I'm just a strange person." She retorted. It wasn't a lie, she was - in her eyes at least. She wasn't as peculiar as her old friends, but she was a lot weirder than the average person. Pearl scoffed.
"You'll meet plenty of people here that'll fit that criteria, why did you actually want to come down here?" She asked once again. Gem hesitated, considering her answer. She hadn't really thought about it too hard, but she remembered the gnawing curiosity at the premise of mysterious fish, unique characters inhabiting the islands and the idea of adventure. Maybe it was also to do with her want for a fresh slate. She loved her old home dearly, as she did with her long-time friends, but she craved something new. She'd still write to them, maybe visit every now and again, but she needed something out of the ordinary and exciting.
If only she could articulate that into coherent words.
"I, I don't know." She settled with instead, diverting her eyes from Pearl's gaze. Pearl hummed in response. Silence came between the two, unsure of what to say next. Had they run out of casual questions to bounce back and forth? Were there no more questions remaining? No, there was one that was eating away at Gem's chest, she needed to know.
…
“Why did you help me?” Gem worked up the courage to ask. Pearl looked back at her, shocked.
“Well I’d assume if you saw someone’s boat capsize you’d dive right on in to help ‘em.” She answered instantly, awkwardly chuckling in an attempt to clear the air.
“Well, yeah, in normal waters I would.” She paused, turning her head to look at Pearl, “But, you knew what was out there. Why?” Pearl visibly tensed at the idea of what was out in the water. Maybe she hadn’t even thought about it, and it was just an instinctual thing to help someone who was in danger. She might have alternate motivations, whatever those could be.
She sat there, gaze landing anywhere but Gem as she fidgeted, struggling to come up with an answer. She made an assortment of uncomfortable sounds until she finally settled on a reason as to why she risked her life for a stranger.
“I think…I would’ve been too guilty for the rest of my life if I had just watched you die, and I had done nothing. The fact that I could’ve seen someone drown and just stand there when I could’ve at least tried.” She took a breath for a moment, the weight of her words and the meaning behind them being processed by Gem.
Pearl finally returned to look at Gem, adding, “I don’t think I could’ve lived with myself.” Those few sentences gave Gem a pretty good idea of the kind of person Pearl was, and she was once again, unfathomably grateful to Pearl. She smiled internally, a warm fuzzy feeling making a home in her gut.
“Thank you. For all of this.” She said once again, she sounded like a broken record at this point. Pearl shrugged.
“I’d do it for anyone, Gem.” She replied, it was a sincere remark. Pearl smirked, adding along at the end, “Y’know I’d get charged for watching someone die without interfering, right? That’s a crime!” She giggled. Gem burst out into laughter.
“So that’s why you saved me! Nice to know.” She sarcastically fired back. The two women continued to laugh for a while longer, the serious atmosphere dissipating in the blink of an eye. Gem didn’t know how long afterwards they had been talking, but Pearl had eventually gotten up and showed Gem to the guest room she had. As soon as Gem had hit the pillow, she was out.
Almost drowning was rough, she deserved a good night’s sleep for once.